Nowadays, there are many web sites on the Internet. For many of the web pages constituting those web sites, it has been seen recently that the designs are quite colorful and elaborate. As such a web page, there is, for example, one in which not only text has been used for a description, but a lot of still images and moving images have also been taken in. The reason why such web pages have been seen recently is that, when a web page which is described using text only is compared with one which is described using still images and moving images, the latter one using still images and moving images can be more highly expected to obtain an effect which is visually appealing to viewers. It is expected that the number of web pages such as the above that are visually appealing will continue increasing.
Meanwhile, a hyperlink is generally embedded in a web page. The hyperlink is address information for other web pages and other data, by tracing which various pieces of information can be gathered. Recently, such a hyperlink is sometimes embedded not only within text, but embedded also within still images, moving images, and the like.
Therefore, when a web page is complex in design, it is often not easy to quickly identify a place where a hyperlink is embedded.
When a hyperlink is embedded within text, it is possible to indicate that the hyperlink is embedded, by underlining the part thereof or by changing the color thereof. However, when a hyperlink is embedded within an elaborate image or the like, since it is difficult to indicate the embedding of the hyperlink using such a simple decoration, a technique is adopted in which a special decoration is added so as to indicate the embedding of the hyperlink. In any case, at present, care must be taken by a web page designer to let users know that a hyperlink is embedded in a web page.
Incidentally, it is also possible to let a viewer identify a position where a hyperlink is embedded by causing the shape of a cursor to be changed when the cursor is moved to the position. However, the method is not one which enables a viewer to quickly identify the position of a hyperlink within a web page.
Meanwhile, it has been proposed (for example, see Japanese Published Patent Application 10-116220 (FIG. 5 in page 9), hereinafter referred to as “Patent Literature 1”) that an estimated time, which is necessary for downloading contents linked to a hyperlink, is indicated, as a mark, in the vicinity of a position where the hyperlink is embedded.
However, the invention in Patent Literature 1 is one by which the mark is just displayed in the vicinity of a position where a hyperlink exists, but is not one by which the positions of hyperlinks are all together displayed on a display screen. Therefore, there has been a problem where a viewer cannot grasp the positions where the hyperlinks exist.
There is also software with a function, which shows information related to hyperlinks. For example, such software is one by which, when there are hyperlinks on a web page, which is in the middle of making, and when these hyperlinks are linked to images, the images are all together shown on another window; or is one by which “href” references within a hypertext are all together shown on another window. However, use of such software, which causes information related to hyperlinks to be shown on another display screen, does not make it possible to grasp the positions on an actual display screen where hyperlinks are located.